Bioagent — A Potential Tool to Control Disease of Cotton Crop

Abstract

Cotton enjoys a pre-eminent status among all cash crops in the country. It is one of the most important economic products of the group of fibers due to volume and value of production. Like any other crop, cotton is also in infested by many diseases which are  usually managed chemically. Here in this experiment, different bioagents were evaluated against the cotton diseases. This experiment engaged total nine treatments including control from which, treatment T, (17.33 PDI) (Seed and soil application PfCICR i.¢., Seed application: 10°cfu/g @10g per kg of seed+ Soil application: 2.5 kg/ha at 30 & 60 DAS) followed by T, (23.22 PDI) recorded significantly  low Bacterial leaf blight infection in comparison to the treatment T, i.e. control (45.17 PDI) in RCH 2 BGII hybrid in the pooled results  for the three years i.e., 2020, 2021 and 2022. For Alternaria leaf spot disease in the pooled data of two years 2020 and 2021, treatment  T, (7.83 PDI) (Seed treatment with Pseudomonas fluorescens CICR (2 x 10®cfu/g) @ 10 g/kg seed + soil application of Trichoderma  viride TNAU1 (2x 106 cfu/g) @ 2.5 kg/ha in 250 kg of vermicompost and sprays of Kresoxim methyl (0.0443%) followed by Captan 70% +  Hexaconazole 5% WP @ 1.5 g/l) recorded significantly minimum disease as compared to the T, i.e. control (19.79 PDI) followed by T, (9.25 PDI). The highest seed cotton yield was recorded in the treatment T, (2542.88 kg/ha) followed by treatment T, (2299.55 kg/ha),  respectively.